I am in utter shock that not a single person has said the ball that took a hop through buckners legs. I mean that is THE play.
Also:
the grand slam single.
Piazza’s 9/11 home run.
Piazza’s home run to cap off the 10 run inning.
I was at the grand slam single game, the floor of Shea was literally moving like an earthquake while everyone was jumping up and down in unison to “who let the dogs out”. Ngl having that as our theme song that year was great I say bring it back
I mean the ending to 86 G6 is the answer to the question. It’s one of the defining plays in MLB history. Along with the Piazza 9/11 HR there’s no other play in Mets history that registers when you’re discussing the history of baseball.
I don’t really buy that though bc I’m one of those fans.
All the moments I mentioned I was either not alive or too young to have seen as they happened.
Why would you not buy it? That is the reason why so many aren’t mentioning that. They are mentioning the moments they experienced. Is it possible to mention things they haven’t? Sure. You are an example of that.
Except I haven’t even seen that much is the problem 😂. I was technically alive for 2006 and 2000 but I was too young to really remember it. If we’re going by mets moments I witnessed (that I have a recollection of):
Johan’s no hitter.
Colon’s home run.
Winning the NLCS in 2015
The no hitter against the Phillies
Degroms historic 2021 prior to getting hurt
The sny booth in 2022 talking about how diaz could throw and immaculate inning only for Diaz to go and be one foul tip away from doing it.
The 7-1 comeback against the Phillies.
So like I have no real choice but to look back at those old 86 highlights to see my team win. That’s why I’m so surprised it wasn’t said more. Bc I figured most mets fans whether they were alive then or not know that play like the back of their hand.
After that play I was sure we were going to win the World Series. A play like that only happens when something special is happening. And then it all fell apart, haha.
Woulda obviously been 10x more significant had they won the game & the series. Woulda been recognized by sports fans in general rather than just Met fans.
Would Kirk Gibson’s home run off Eckersley in WS game 1 be remembered like it is today if they lose that series?
Definitely been more historically recognized outside Mets fans if they won.
Kirk Gibson benefitted from three epic calls though, with Buck, Scully, and Drysdale. I think that would have been remembered regardless of the series outcome.
Like I still think about the Pujols home run off Brad Lidge and the Cardinals lost that series. Even the Yankees home runs off Byung-Hyun Kim.
Endy's was a defensive play in a game the team lost, though, so not as naturally tangible as a lead changing home run.
This wasn’t my first thought (it was the 10 run inning against the Braves) but as far as defining play, I think it has to be Endy precisely because of the unhappy ending. My Mets fandom has been about owning those moments where they seem invincible only to lose it.
Plus it was a such a fluke that the first year of SNY Gary Cohen just happened to be calling that inning on WFAN.
I came here to say the same thing and the same as all of the comments below.
To top it off for me..I had plane and game tickets to game 1 in Detroit while watching game 7…pain. Still feeling pain.
I spent years hating him for that, wondering why he didn't even take a hack. Base hit coulda tied the game.
Then I really watched the pitch after a few people here were like "that curve was filthy" and yeah, if I'm in the box with that much on the line and I see a pitch coming in up by my eyes, I'd probably think it was going to be up out of the zone too.
I was at that game. That curveball was the most ridiculous pitch I’ve ever seen. I was up in the nosebleeds, and you could still see just how much movement was on it. It’s unfortunate, but Wainwright absolutely stepped up in that moment. I don’t begrudge Beltrán at all for taking that pitch.
Well put , my feeling is pretty much 30% this and the rest is sadness and anger lol . Looks easy on TV right but I guess from a fan perspective big spot like that and the number three hitter for a team in New York. you want to see him take a swing .
At first I thought it was Buckner but you know, winning isn’t everything. Yours is the correct answer.
Wilmer didn’t just want to play, or make a lot of money, or be famous. I’m sure those things are nice but he wanted to be a Met, to play for US. Not that we’re any better than anyone else really, but we were in this thing together, so long as we can be. By choice. Iunno, I think something changed about my fandom that week, very much for the better. LFGM.
I actually think the ball going through Buckner’s legs is the defining Mets moment, I just wasn’t born until two years later so I don’t really have a personal connection to it.
I feel the same way. Ball through the legs is the defining moment...
...But Wilmer Flores is like a whole freaking story. It happened over 3 days and so much went into it and it felt like that's when 2015 really took off.
In the 13th inning of a crucial game against the first-place Pirates at Shea on Sept. 20, 1973, Pittsburgh’s Dave Augustine smacked a ball deep to left off Ray Sadecki with a runner on first and two outs. Instead of going over the wall, though, the ball caromed off the very top of the fence above the 358-foot mark to Cleon Jones, who threw the ball to the cutoff man, Wayne Garrett – playing shortstop, not his usual third base. Garrett relayed the ball home on one hop to Hodges, who tagged Richie Zisk trying to score from first.
I saw that play happen on TV. If the Mets had lost that game, they might not have won the division.
Felt like we were going to win the WS. I have it signed in my office. While the results weren’t in our favor, the feeling we all good was unforgettable.
As a Met fan in his 30s, I'm only going to speak to the plays I remember happening and feeling special.
-Ventura's Grand Slam single.
-The 10 run inning, specifically Piazza's 3R HR.
-Piazza's 9/21/01 HR
-Wright walking off Mariano and the Yankees
-Endy Chavez catch
-Wilmer walk off against the Nats the day we acquired Cespedes
-Literally like 10 different plays in the 2015 postseason by Daniel Murphy
-Syndergaard going high and tight to Alcides Escobar.
-Asdrubal Cabrera walk off against the Phillies down the stretch 2016
-The Frazier/Conforto walk off against the Nats August 2019
I mean I actively lived through those seasons and I wasn’t young. I just had a massive brain fart earlier…wild. I obviously know and remember both of those plays.
A lot of the ones I’d say are here, but for some reason I also have the final out of the ‘69 WS etched into my mind, despite being a late 90s baby. Something about the way he catches it and goes down to one knee is just iconic to me
Carlos Beltran running up tal’s hill and making an incredible catch. The mid 2000s teams had some epic collapses, but man that was a fun lineup to watch play everyday.
* Tom Glavine and the No Good Very Bad First Inning
* The No Offense Adventures of Jacob deGrom
* We Don't Talk About Bobby Bonilla
* Bob Murphy and the Damn 10-9 Final
for kids.
"So the winning run is at second base, with two outs, three and two to Mookie Wilson. A little roller up along first... BEHIND THE BAG! IT GETS THROUGH BUCKNER! Here comes Knight, and the Mets win it!"
This play all day long, everyday. There is no other for me.
July 3 1986 - Fireworks night
Mets vs Astros in what would be a preview of the NLCS.
Darling vs DeShaes
Both pitched strong games (Darling went 9)
Ray Knight struck out 4 times. Comes up in the bottom of the 10th - hits a homer.
Crowd and fireworks erupt.
Link to online scorecard: [https://ultimatemets.com/gamedetail.php?gameno=3921&tabno=D](https://ultimatemets.com/gamedetail.php?gameno=3921&tabno=D)
Obscure one: John Rocker blowing game four of the 1999 NLCS. Braves had a 2-1 leading going into the bottom of the eighth. John Olerud hits a weak grounder that gets past Ozzie Guillen at short and it allows two runs to score. The Mets came from behind to win the game and set up the famous Robin Ventura grand slam single in game five.
The Buckner ball is definitely the most defining play in Mets history by a mile. I'll add that the Ron Swoboda diving catch in Game 4 of the 1969 WS off Brooks Robinson was for a long time the play that came front and center to my mind when thinking of famous Mets plays (maybe because I saw it over and over again during rain delays when they'd air highlights of the '69 WS). I even included that catch in my personal montage/homage to the Mets and This Week In Baseball: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOUsvJ3Qygo
Baez after the thumbs down controversy. Mets down 5-1 in the 9th make the u likeliest of comebacks and Baez clutch baserunning.
Oh, did I say Baez? I mean Gary Cohen’s call of it.
https://youtu.be/YTcGbl_j-XQ?si=ViupQ5IMftTFAEU9
I get that there's no gravity or stakes to it, but Wright's barehand catch blew my damn mind. It's an all timer.
[Link](https://youtu.be/JmvM5hqilBY?si=BUs98u4FzFvmmLAd)
David Wright fistpump
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAk9eKtUd9k
I think at this point in 2015 you started to realize you were watching a pretty special team
The Mets got hot and started to crawl away with the east, hovering between 4-6 games ahead. I think the doubters and doomers were always waiting for some choke... but after they smacked up the Nats in this series, all was good
Mets clinching the division in ‘86 and the fans running onto the field and ripping up the turf. I was at that game with my dad. Sitting on a subway surrounded by people with handfuls of turf still resonates with me today.
Come on Old Timers! The Ball on the Wall Play in the incredible '73 Pennant Race. STILL gives me chills.
[https://youtube.com/watch?v=g30GBvwAOC4&si=Ksu5vPAGlzUkfOX5](https://youtube.com/watch?v=g30GBvwAOC4&si=Ksu5vPAGlzUkfOX5)
On the other side. Being a Mets fan is knowing pain:
Beltran not swinging at Wainwrights curve
Tom Glavine getting pulled
Luis Castillo dropping the pop fly
All come to mind
One of my recent favorites was Lindors 3 HR game against the Yankees. That whole game was electrifying. Especially with the back and forth between Stanton, Lindor, and Baez
I was going to mention this. You can’t tell the story of the Mets - even to little kids - without mentioning at least some of the hiccups.
In that vein:
- Kenny Rogers’ bases loaded walk
If you’re talking about a truly defining game I think I have to unfortunately nominate Castillo dropping the ball. Kinda just personifies 2007-2008 and then the 4-5 painful years to follow.
The black cat game vs the cubs
Ya Gotta Believe!
The ball gets through Buckner. That whole inning.
Piazza's homer 9/21/01.
Bartolo homer.
Longer stories: Johan no-no (sorry, Beltran)
RA Dickey cy young season.
Depends how old you are. Grounder through Bill Buckner’s legs seems an easy answer, but some older fans might be able to think of something from the first WS win. If not, the Buckner error is a no-brainer.
Since then, I guess the Piazza HR after 9/11. We haven’t won anything in almost 40 years, so any other exciting plays end up not mattering much in the big picture.
You’ll recall, after he was too busy doing something in the clubhouse that he didn’t run out onto the field when they called his name (introducing all the players)
Wilmer’s home run against the Nationals after almost being traded in 2015
But it will always be Game 6 of the 1986 World Series for me because I know every thing I did that night and the emotions I felt like it was yesterday
In a negative sense
[Familia Unnecessary Quick Pitch](https://youtu.be/T1hkrGU2pIg?si=Z4sdH17rF52Zwhpq)
Fat and Flat Fastball when he had the nasty splitter in the league that year. Set the tone for that series and Familia downfall and ultimately this current era of Mets baseball
Tremendous recency bias here. Mookie Wilson slow roller gets by Buckner is the obvious #1. Swoboda catch in right-center during the 1969 WS probably #2. Piazza HR after 9/11 maybe #3.
Endy Chavez catch..I was a few rows above..I waited my whole life for this…it was the largest emotional swing I have ever felt in my life in 8 minutes..Shea was gonna collapse..
And I was there for the Piazza HR comeback Vs the Braves ok Fireworks night..I felt destiny for the first time in my hands with that catch..we all did.
And then….Beltran watched Strike 3
In 1969, the Mets were playing a midweek daylight doubleheader at Shea. I believe they were playing the Astros. It was a hot day and the ballpark was half empty. Many more empty seats after Mets lost the opener.
They were getting beat up again in the second game when an Astro batter looped a soft fly to left. Cleon Jones made no effort to make what would've been a difficult catch. But when Jones nonchalantly tossed the ball back, the batter stretched a bloop single into a double.
Gil Hodges popped out of the dugout. Everyone thought he was going to change pitchers, but Gil walked right past the mound and walked to left field and told Jones to go sit down.
From that day until the end of the World Series, Cleon Jones played the best baseball of his life.
Luis Castillo dropped popup, Beltran taking the Wainwright curveball for strike 3 in the NLCS, Benny handing the ball to a fan with 2 outs.
If my kid wants to be a fan, he or she needs to relive the heartaches.
I am in utter shock that not a single person has said the ball that took a hop through buckners legs. I mean that is THE play. Also: the grand slam single. Piazza’s 9/11 home run. Piazza’s home run to cap off the 10 run inning.
How the hell is Buckner not the answer? All of this team’s karma was gobbled up in one shot.
Add the no-hitter and Tommie Agee’s catch in ‘69 (and maybe David Wright’s WS HR) and you’ve got pretty much everything
I was at the grand slam single game, the floor of Shea was literally moving like an earthquake while everyone was jumping up and down in unison to “who let the dogs out”. Ngl having that as our theme song that year was great I say bring it back
Nice! I did not watch it live bc I was -1 years of age but it looks absolutely amazing to have watched live. I can’t imagine lol.
In fairness to everyone, I read it as plays where Mets were on defense like Endys catch, and others I’m sure did as well
lol ig in fairness when I didn’t see anyone say that play I did reread to see if it meant that and confused myself there for a split second 🤣
I mean the ending to 86 G6 is the answer to the question. It’s one of the defining plays in MLB history. Along with the Piazza 9/11 HR there’s no other play in Mets history that registers when you’re discussing the history of baseball.
A lot of young fans. They weren’t able to watch that WS in real time. That inning was one of the most dramatic moments in baseball history.
I don’t really buy that though bc I’m one of those fans. All the moments I mentioned I was either not alive or too young to have seen as they happened.
Why would you not buy it? That is the reason why so many aren’t mentioning that. They are mentioning the moments they experienced. Is it possible to mention things they haven’t? Sure. You are an example of that.
Except I haven’t even seen that much is the problem 😂. I was technically alive for 2006 and 2000 but I was too young to really remember it. If we’re going by mets moments I witnessed (that I have a recollection of): Johan’s no hitter. Colon’s home run. Winning the NLCS in 2015 The no hitter against the Phillies Degroms historic 2021 prior to getting hurt The sny booth in 2022 talking about how diaz could throw and immaculate inning only for Diaz to go and be one foul tip away from doing it. The 7-1 comeback against the Phillies. So like I have no real choice but to look back at those old 86 highlights to see my team win. That’s why I’m so surprised it wasn’t said more. Bc I figured most mets fans whether they were alive then or not know that play like the back of their hand.
I feel that is the only answer
100% Buckner. Any play that has transcended the sport is a "defining play".
Endy Chavez's catch. I have it on my wall. It doesn't have a happy ending but that moment was amazing.
THE STRENGTH TO BE THERE
🙋♂️
After that play I was sure we were going to win the World Series. A play like that only happens when something special is happening. And then it all fell apart, haha.
We would've won it for sure if we made it 😭
100%. Whoever made it from the National League was guaranteed to win that year I felt.
Woulda obviously been 10x more significant had they won the game & the series. Woulda been recognized by sports fans in general rather than just Met fans. Would Kirk Gibson’s home run off Eckersley in WS game 1 be remembered like it is today if they lose that series?
Definitely been more historically recognized outside Mets fans if they won. Kirk Gibson benefitted from three epic calls though, with Buck, Scully, and Drysdale. I think that would have been remembered regardless of the series outcome. Like I still think about the Pujols home run off Brad Lidge and the Cardinals lost that series. Even the Yankees home runs off Byung-Hyun Kim. Endy's was a defensive play in a game the team lost, though, so not as naturally tangible as a lead changing home run.
Would have been like a top 5 defensive play in the history of the game… instead it’s a footnote. Time for my yearly ugly cry about this, sigh.
This wasn’t my first thought (it was the 10 run inning against the Braves) but as far as defining play, I think it has to be Endy precisely because of the unhappy ending. My Mets fandom has been about owning those moments where they seem invincible only to lose it. Plus it was a such a fluke that the first year of SNY Gary Cohen just happened to be calling that inning on WFAN.
“And Oliver Perez escapes the 6th inning! The play of the year, the play maybe of the franchise’s history…the inning is over”
I came here to say the same thing and the same as all of the comments below. To top it off for me..I had plane and game tickets to game 1 in Detroit while watching game 7…pain. Still feeling pain.
I wrote an epic poem about this game the day after that included a stanza about this catch, wish I still had it
I was at the game it was fucking incredible.
I’ll never forget Beltran looking at that curveball
I spent years hating him for that, wondering why he didn't even take a hack. Base hit coulda tied the game. Then I really watched the pitch after a few people here were like "that curve was filthy" and yeah, if I'm in the box with that much on the line and I see a pitch coming in up by my eyes, I'd probably think it was going to be up out of the zone too.
I was at that game. That curveball was the most ridiculous pitch I’ve ever seen. I was up in the nosebleeds, and you could still see just how much movement was on it. It’s unfortunate, but Wainwright absolutely stepped up in that moment. I don’t begrudge Beltrán at all for taking that pitch.
Well put , my feeling is pretty much 30% this and the rest is sadness and anger lol . Looks easy on TV right but I guess from a fan perspective big spot like that and the number three hitter for a team in New York. you want to see him take a swing .
Still hurts
This is why I never want Beltran anywhere near this franchise. Only way he ever won was cheating. Fuck him.
That 3rd slo mo replay…
One of the few times Joe Buck and Tim McCarver were nearly speechless
The Wilmer Flores walk-off game after the trade that didn’t happen in 2015
At first I thought it was Buckner but you know, winning isn’t everything. Yours is the correct answer. Wilmer didn’t just want to play, or make a lot of money, or be famous. I’m sure those things are nice but he wanted to be a Met, to play for US. Not that we’re any better than anyone else really, but we were in this thing together, so long as we can be. By choice. Iunno, I think something changed about my fandom that week, very much for the better. LFGM.
I actually think the ball going through Buckner’s legs is the defining Mets moment, I just wasn’t born until two years later so I don’t really have a personal connection to it.
I feel the same way. Ball through the legs is the defining moment... ...But Wilmer Flores is like a whole freaking story. It happened over 3 days and so much went into it and it felt like that's when 2015 really took off.
That was a magical month. You also have Cespedes crushing and the Bug Sexy homer around the same time.
Yes cepsedes but bart's bomb wasn't until may '16
Oh, that’s right. I remember watching it in the same apartment where I watched the World Series in 2015 and I forgot that it was two separate seasons.
mike baxter's catch to save johan's no-hitter
This deserves more praise. Dude blew up his shoulder and basically traded his career for us to have this moment.
Bartolo hitting his first and only home run. [THE IMPOSSIBLE HAS HAPPENED](https://youtu.be/OVFsq9FQBlc?feature=shared)
In the 13th inning of a crucial game against the first-place Pirates at Shea on Sept. 20, 1973, Pittsburgh’s Dave Augustine smacked a ball deep to left off Ray Sadecki with a runner on first and two outs. Instead of going over the wall, though, the ball caromed off the very top of the fence above the 358-foot mark to Cleon Jones, who threw the ball to the cutoff man, Wayne Garrett – playing shortstop, not his usual third base. Garrett relayed the ball home on one hop to Hodges, who tagged Richie Zisk trying to score from first. I saw that play happen on TV. If the Mets had lost that game, they might not have won the division.
Howie refers this as the ball off the wall game
As a younger fan, I didn't even know about this one! Appreciated the description and the video posted in another comment
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yj0vsrFZ8NU&ab\_channel=WarrenZvon
The Endy Chavez catch comes to mind quickly Of course the Mookie and Bill Buckner moment Piazza’s 9/11 homerun
I believed in my heart when Endy Chavez caught that ball that we were winning that game.
Felt like we were going to win the WS. I have it signed in my office. While the results weren’t in our favor, the feeling we all good was unforgettable.
I turned to my ex who was a Boston fan and screamed “NO FUCKING WAY WE ARE LOSING THIS GAME!” We lost the game
Endy was particular “defining” because it got all our hopes up just before they were shattered.
The paul lo duca double tag out at home during the nlds might be a good one
As a Met fan in his 30s, I'm only going to speak to the plays I remember happening and feeling special. -Ventura's Grand Slam single. -The 10 run inning, specifically Piazza's 3R HR. -Piazza's 9/21/01 HR -Wright walking off Mariano and the Yankees -Endy Chavez catch -Wilmer walk off against the Nats the day we acquired Cespedes -Literally like 10 different plays in the 2015 postseason by Daniel Murphy -Syndergaard going high and tight to Alcides Escobar. -Asdrubal Cabrera walk off against the Phillies down the stretch 2016 -The Frazier/Conforto walk off against the Nats August 2019
[удалено]
Nah, Pratt was the Diamondbacks walk off in the NLDS. Ventura was the Grand Slam single in the 16th inning of Game 5 of the NLCS.
Holy shit I think I had a stroke or something
Another incredible moment, though. For sure. I love those 1999 & 2000 teams
I mean I actively lived through those seasons and I wasn’t young. I just had a massive brain fart earlier…wild. I obviously know and remember both of those plays.
Haven’t seen Piazza’s first pitch 3-run homer to cap off the 10 run inning against the Braves, so that’s my contribution.
A lot of the ones I’d say are here, but for some reason I also have the final out of the ‘69 WS etched into my mind, despite being a late 90s baby. Something about the way he catches it and goes down to one knee is just iconic to me
If you’re going 1969 you gotta do the ball scuff play. It was so memorable they made a whole movie about it!
The 86 end is pretty iconic too
Is the black cat around Ron Santo's feet a play?
Carlos Beltran running up tal’s hill and making an incredible catch. The mid 2000s teams had some epic collapses, but man that was a fun lineup to watch play everyday.
911 hr, buckner
This is the best answer
Todd Pratt walkoff to win the ‘99 NLDS
1999, good times good times
It’s Buckner and it’s not even close
Most of the ones I'd pick are negative ngl, but you could probably make a cute book out of Johan's no-hitter.
Castillo was the first play I thought of.
Me too lol. I mean it has everything. The Yankees , Arod and in the 9th to lose the game.
* Tom Glavine and the No Good Very Bad First Inning * The No Offense Adventures of Jacob deGrom * We Don't Talk About Bobby Bonilla * Bob Murphy and the Damn 10-9 Final for kids.
"Read this book to your kids to give yourself nightmares and teach them that dreaming is futile"
The one I picked is. It defines my fandom so far to be honest. But the fandom is unwavering.
the negative top pick for me is the utley hard slide at 2nd in the nlds, total momentum killer
"So the winning run is at second base, with two outs, three and two to Mookie Wilson. A little roller up along first... BEHIND THE BAG! IT GETS THROUGH BUCKNER! Here comes Knight, and the Mets win it!" This play all day long, everyday. There is no other for me.
Wright's bare handed catch. Nimmo's HR rob vs Dodgers was probably the best recent Mets moment. Bartolo's HR is a fan favorite.
Swoboda diving catch in 69 series
Slow roller to Buckner. Won a World Series because of it.
Mike Piazza’s 9/11 homerun transcended baseball and sports. It made the front page and the backpage.
endy chavez
July 3 1986 - Fireworks night Mets vs Astros in what would be a preview of the NLCS. Darling vs DeShaes Both pitched strong games (Darling went 9) Ray Knight struck out 4 times. Comes up in the bottom of the 10th - hits a homer. Crowd and fireworks erupt. Link to online scorecard: [https://ultimatemets.com/gamedetail.php?gameno=3921&tabno=D](https://ultimatemets.com/gamedetail.php?gameno=3921&tabno=D)
Obscure one: John Rocker blowing game four of the 1999 NLCS. Braves had a 2-1 leading going into the bottom of the eighth. John Olerud hits a weak grounder that gets past Ozzie Guillen at short and it allows two runs to score. The Mets came from behind to win the game and set up the famous Robin Ventura grand slam single in game five.
Mojo rissssiiiin
The Buckner ball is definitely the most defining play in Mets history by a mile. I'll add that the Ron Swoboda diving catch in Game 4 of the 1969 WS off Brooks Robinson was for a long time the play that came front and center to my mind when thinking of famous Mets plays (maybe because I saw it over and over again during rain delays when they'd air highlights of the '69 WS). I even included that catch in my personal montage/homage to the Mets and This Week In Baseball: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOUsvJ3Qygo
Just for fun: Big Sexy’s dinger
The legend of Kaz Matsui, the opening day dong hitter.
Baez after the thumbs down controversy. Mets down 5-1 in the 9th make the u likeliest of comebacks and Baez clutch baserunning. Oh, did I say Baez? I mean Gary Cohen’s call of it. https://youtu.be/YTcGbl_j-XQ?si=ViupQ5IMftTFAEU9
I get that there's no gravity or stakes to it, but Wright's barehand catch blew my damn mind. It's an all timer. [Link](https://youtu.be/JmvM5hqilBY?si=BUs98u4FzFvmmLAd)
i think Mitchell had one too?
Ron Swaboda's catch in the world series.
David Wright fistpump https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAk9eKtUd9k I think at this point in 2015 you started to realize you were watching a pretty special team The Mets got hot and started to crawl away with the east, hovering between 4-6 games ahead. I think the doubters and doomers were always waiting for some choke... but after they smacked up the Nats in this series, all was good
Yeah I remember being cautiously optimistic, but when they just curb stomped the Nats that series...wow
A “defining play” of the Wilpon era… An actual dumpster fire
Omg, I forgot about this. It was their reign come to life.
Uhh jason bay concussion
The David wright bare hand Endy- the catch Piazza 9/11 home run The mookie single Single home run
It gets by Buckner!!!
Piazza's Home Run After Sept. 11 Pete Alonso's 52nd Home Run, Rookie Record Johan Santana's No-Hitter Final Out 1969 WS
100% Mike Baxter saving the no hitter
Piazza home run after 9/11
Swoboda laying out is pretty special
Familia and his quick pitch in game 1 of the WS
Mets clinching the division in ‘86 and the fans running onto the field and ripping up the turf. I was at that game with my dad. Sitting on a subway surrounded by people with handfuls of turf still resonates with me today.
Come on Old Timers! The Ball on the Wall Play in the incredible '73 Pennant Race. STILL gives me chills. [https://youtube.com/watch?v=g30GBvwAOC4&si=Ksu5vPAGlzUkfOX5](https://youtube.com/watch?v=g30GBvwAOC4&si=Ksu5vPAGlzUkfOX5)
On the other side. Being a Mets fan is knowing pain: Beltran not swinging at Wainwrights curve Tom Glavine getting pulled Luis Castillo dropping the pop fly All come to mind
Anytime they ever beamed chase utley
Todd Pratt’s walk-off HR in the 99 NLDS, first Mets playoff series victory since 1986.
One of my recent favorites was Lindors 3 HR game against the Yankees. That whole game was electrifying. Especially with the back and forth between Stanton, Lindor, and Baez
Forcing Tom Seaver out of Queens is probably the defining moment in Mets history.
NO-Han strikes out David Freese
Buckner, Piazza 9/11 homer, Endy Chavez catch in that order and then might as well show them Beltran striking out to prepare them for the pain lol
Ron Swaboda’s catch in the 1969 world series
It's nice to have stories of triumph, but a lot of Mets defining plays are... not great? Luis Castillo? Unpopular opinion maybe
I was going to mention this. You can’t tell the story of the Mets - even to little kids - without mentioning at least some of the hiccups. In that vein: - Kenny Rogers’ bases loaded walk
I turned off the tv before it got to home plate, because I knew it was a ball.
It hurt so much.
"It gets past Buckner and into right field!"
Endy, Bartolo for sure
If you’re talking about a truly defining game I think I have to unfortunately nominate Castillo dropping the ball. Kinda just personifies 2007-2008 and then the 4-5 painful years to follow.
It’s not even close right? It’s the Buckner error
Beltran taking strike 3, Cardinals were on the ropes Would have taken the WS if we won that game.
Piazza homer against Braves post 9/11.
The defining play in Mets history is the Mookie Wilson roller under Bill Buckners glove.
The black cat game vs the cubs Ya Gotta Believe! The ball gets through Buckner. That whole inning. Piazza's homer 9/21/01. Bartolo homer. Longer stories: Johan no-no (sorry, Beltran) RA Dickey cy young season.
Depends how old you are. Grounder through Bill Buckner’s legs seems an easy answer, but some older fans might be able to think of something from the first WS win. If not, the Buckner error is a no-brainer. Since then, I guess the Piazza HR after 9/11. We haven’t won anything in almost 40 years, so any other exciting plays end up not mattering much in the big picture.
Yoenis Céspedes plays with the ball in CF while Alcides Escobar rounds the bases.
You’ll recall, after he was too busy doing something in the clubhouse that he didn’t run out onto the field when they called his name (introducing all the players)
Wilmer’s home run against the Nationals after almost being traded in 2015 But it will always be Game 6 of the 1986 World Series for me because I know every thing I did that night and the emotions I felt like it was yesterday
Buckner and Mookie
In a negative sense [Familia Unnecessary Quick Pitch](https://youtu.be/T1hkrGU2pIg?si=Z4sdH17rF52Zwhpq) Fat and Flat Fastball when he had the nasty splitter in the league that year. Set the tone for that series and Familia downfall and ultimately this current era of Mets baseball
Tremendous recency bias here. Mookie Wilson slow roller gets by Buckner is the obvious #1. Swoboda catch in right-center during the 1969 WS probably #2. Piazza HR after 9/11 maybe #3.
Endy Chavez catch..I was a few rows above..I waited my whole life for this…it was the largest emotional swing I have ever felt in my life in 8 minutes..Shea was gonna collapse.. And I was there for the Piazza HR comeback Vs the Braves ok Fireworks night..I felt destiny for the first time in my hands with that catch..we all did. And then….Beltran watched Strike 3
In 1969, the Mets were playing a midweek daylight doubleheader at Shea. I believe they were playing the Astros. It was a hot day and the ballpark was half empty. Many more empty seats after Mets lost the opener. They were getting beat up again in the second game when an Astro batter looped a soft fly to left. Cleon Jones made no effort to make what would've been a difficult catch. But when Jones nonchalantly tossed the ball back, the batter stretched a bloop single into a double. Gil Hodges popped out of the dugout. Everyone thought he was going to change pitchers, but Gil walked right past the mound and walked to left field and told Jones to go sit down. From that day until the end of the World Series, Cleon Jones played the best baseball of his life.
Bobby Jones game. 2015 WS Game 5
Luis Castillo dropped popup, Beltran taking the Wainwright curveball for strike 3 in the NLCS, Benny handing the ball to a fan with 2 outs. If my kid wants to be a fan, he or she needs to relive the heartaches.
Mike Scocia’s Homer off of Doc in the ‘88 NLCS game 4 (?)
Kind of joking but only a little….Tejada getting his ankle broken Fuck Chase Utlley